Category: Wednesday Volunteers

At last the Wednesday volunteers have been able to get back to some much needed work in the park. (With added social distancing, of course!)
 
The last two Wednesdays we have caught up with the litter and dog picking and made some headway on the Cafe flower bed. But clearing all the weeds has been hard going.
 
It is so long since we had any rain that it has been like trying to push a hoe through concrete. And as the weeds break off rather than pull out once we do get some rain they are all going to grow again.
 
For the moment just don’t look at the front of the flower bed! The wall flowers are over and the remains of the primulars looking a bit sorry for themselve. But as we get things under control these will be replaced with some summer bedding plants.
 

 
The iris have been looking good but are nearly over but for now just cast your eyes over the roses.
 
They are doing exceptionally well particularly so early in the summer and in case you have failed to spot that low down beautiful specimen white rose it is pictured here.
 

It’s been a mixed bag of Wednesdays over the past month or so, what with the ever changing weather.

Fence painting 

Following our purchase of further supplies of paint, fence painting has resumed on the few panels we are able to complete, but only when we are not too busy with other tasks (and the weather is good!).

Once the council finish pressure washing the remainder of the fence – they did promise to get it done last September when they stopped the volunteers doing it – we hope to organise another weekend volunteer painting session.

Path clearing

It’s been an ongoing job – returning sand to the beach that recent storms had washed into the children’s play area.

Storm damage and erosion

The recent storms have also undermined more areas on the promenade….

And the little ‘Ricky-racky’ bridge has had a tough winter – further erosion has exposed part of the structure, which is rotten.

With the last two Wednesdays falling on the most important days of the festive season, it has been understandable that volunteer numbers have been a bit lower than usual.

Nevertheless, litter picking in the park has continued over the holiday as has clearing up poo after irresponsible dog owners. We even managed a bit of gardening.

Muddy Boots

Thanks to Muddy Boots Nursery, the Wednesday Volunteers have been enjoying the container of chocolates given to us before Christmas. But we are only allowed one for every bucket of litter we pick up! Thank you Muddy Boots – we do love to see you in the park.

Dog toys

We do get some lovely dogs enjoying themselves in the park. Some obviously got too many presents for Christmas as they keep leaving them for us to find! Any lost toys can be reclaimed from the Paddling Pool Van on Wednesday mornings — by the park cafe. At the last count there were eleven balls in the van! In the spirit of the holiday, we can always find a less well off dog who would appreciate one of the unclaimed balls.

New Year’s day on the beach

On New Year’s Day we met a family enjoying themselves for the first time in their newly acquired beach hut – note the festive decoration over the entrance. The air was a little damp, but what a great way to spend New Years day…in Hamworthy Park!

Wishing you all a healthy and happy 2020.

Flower beds

On Wednesday,  the volunteers carried out the usual litter and dog poo picking. We also cleared the flower bed in front of the cafe of the ornamental grasses. This was because they were starting to smother the rose bushes. With this done, we could prune the roses that could not be reached last week.

The bed looks a bit of a mess now but we will tidy it up this coming Wednesday and meanwhile consider what new plants we might put in. Hopefully, over the winter months, a number of the existing primulas will provide a bit of colour.

Sand on the promenade

Having cleared the western end of the promenade of sand and debris last week, we found that the eastern end was not so bad. What had been deposited there was returned to the beach.

Fallen tree

The previous Wednesday, we were busy at the western end of the park. So we are not sure when it occurred – but we see that a tree near the redundant outdoor education centre had blown over in the recent strong winds. We’ve reported this to the Council who will hopefully deal with it soon. The Council doesn’t allow our volunteers to use power tools in the park – something that we are working hard to change!

Marine life

A spectacular looking star fish was seen today – the largest one I have seen in one our beach. A man was trying to return it to the water without much success as the next wave beached it again. Not being an expert on marine life, I’m not sure if it is too late once it has been deposited on the beach – perhaps there is an expert out there who can let us know.

Last week we noted that something in the water near a groyne had taken the interest of a lady – she informed us it was a cuttlefish she had seen swimming, but when I got there hoping for a photo it had disappeared. We know they are about as it is not unusual to find the odd cuttlefish bone on the beach.

Get involved

If you would like to get some fresh air, meet people and make a difference, then come and join one of our volunteering groups.

Wednesday Volunteers – meet every Wednesday in Hamworthy Park, 9.30 am outside the park cafe. Just turn up!

Saturday Volunteers – we run a programme of Saturday volunteer events roughly once a month.

See our website or Facebook for further details. Or get in contact.

It’s been a week of high tides and winds! And as such, a great deal of sand and debris had been deposited on the promenade.

If it is left on the promenade, it builds up and can make life difficult for wheelchairs, pushchairs and young children on their scooters.

So, on Wednesday, two volunteers spent a couple of hours shovelling and sweeping it all back onto the beach. Unfortunately, we were unable to clear the whole of the prom as the amount of sand gradually took its toll on the elderly volunteers.

Fortunately, the Wednesday morning weather was very good and as we progressed, first coats were removed then cardigans! We concentrated our efforts on the worst areas and did manage to clear the stretch from the western end to the central footpath as can be seen in the before and after photos.

No doubt the volunteers will be back before winter is done!

 

WARNING – BROKEN GLASS

Last year, particularly in the dry summer months, the Friends were made aware that broken glass was becoming a potential hazard as it was constantly appearing on the surface along the top of the Western end flood bank.

What was done? 

A member of the Wednesday working party picked up a number of pieces but within a week or so more had appeared. The situation was constantly monitored and on another occasion 32 shards of glass were picked up.

We reported this to a Council Officer but we were told it was the responsibility of the Environment Agency – either way, nothing official has been done to solve the problem.

Reoccurring problem 

We have recently had another dry spell and it appears the problem has not gone away. This week twenty-one pieces of glass (see photo) had broken the surface and were picked up by a Wednesday Volunteer. 

As it seems likely that this will be an ongoing problem we wish to bring it to park users’ attention, particularly dog owners and possibly parents of younger children.